It has been suggested that dancing is the oldest of the art forms. Certainly, it has been found in every culture and on every continent in the world since time immemorial. In all instances, the elements of rhythm, symmetry, repetition, exaggeration and grace exhibit themselves in a visual spectacle that both enlists attention, and instills a feeling of well-being both in participants and the audience. While in the simplest forms of dance, these elements of rhythm, symmetry, a repetition, exaggeration and grace all are incorporated in movement of the hands and feet, the torso also tends to follow movements and participate in the exercise.
In more developed forms of dance, such as the minuet, square dancing, and in the dancing of the Middle Ages generally, the torso is an active participant in the dance, with its movement controlled into orientation and position to complement the movement of the hands and feet. It all of these forms of dance, however, movement is made with a relatively natural and ordinary energy expenditure, as well as with movements which derived from everyday un-stressed movements.
However, with the development of the dance, and desire for a greater range of artistic expression, dancers have catapulted themselves from the ordinary everyday sorts of movements to movements derived from actions at the edge of human endurance and athletic ability. Perhaps one of the more refined forms of dance first to employ such movements was the ballet.
In ballet, movements include dance steps inspired by running, jumping, leaping and physical interaction between two or more individuals. The end result is a remarkably punishing regimen of movement being associated with virtually any ballet performance. Not surprisingly, the pursuit of perfection in ballet goes along with a remarkably high incidence of strain and injury. Indeed, the problem is so serious that few dancers are able to practice their profession into middle age.
At the same time, the attempt, in ballet, to achieve extremes in movement has spawned the development of footwear adapted to enable such unnatural movements as rotation on a toe, walking and landing on the toes, and the like. Such footwear, in addition to enabling such dance steps, also has the salutary effect of protecting the feet, by spreading out the force of a landing, or the pressure resulting from support of the body over a wide area of the outside surface of the foot, thus reducing the incidence of injury and strain. However, footwear also has the effect of reducing control under certain circumstances.
Moreover, while the use of, for example, ballet slippers provides a visually stimulating display, given the slipper's typically satiny silk charmeuse finish, in many forms of dance, the visibility of the shoe is regarded with disfavor. This is articulate cell indicates of modern dance where the "barefoot "look is considered, for many pieces, required.
Moreover, given the fact that modern dance builds upon classical ballet and thus takes from classical ballet dramatic movements at the edge of human endurance and ability, the attempt to implement this measure of control and exaggeration without protective footwear has been disastrous in terms of the impact on the modern dancer. Nevertheless, so vigorous is the requirement for dancing without the protection of the classical ballet slipper, dancers, daily, subject their feet to the punishment of impacts, pulls, twisting and abrasion. The result is sore, inflamed skin, or, worse, cracked and bleeding soles.